This article is part of our DraftKings MLB series.
It's a light night of MLB baseball Thursday (and it might get lighter, since two games have the threat of rain looming). There are four games on the schedule starting at 7:05 p.m ET or later. Hey, that still means you get to play some MLB DFS if you want! Here are my lineup recommendations.
Pitching
Chris Bassitt, TOR at LAA ($8,500): Bassitt's start to the season has stood out, as he has a 2.91 FIP through seven starts. Honestly, the only thing that is a real outlier is his 1.59 BB/9 rate. The Angels are in the bottom 10 in runs scored and have a sub-.300 OBP. While Bassitt has struggled against lefties, as per usual, that's not really an issue with the Angels' lineup. Unless you're really afraid of Nolan Schanuel. I'm not.
Top Target
He hasn't been running, but Freddie Freeman ($6,200) has been mashing. The lefty has slashed .362/.435/.713 with eight home runs and seven doubles. Since 2023, he has a .961 OPS against righties. Brandon Pfaadt hasn't quite taken the step forward I thought he might. His ERA is down to 3.79, but his HR/9 rate is up to 1.56. Plus, in his MLB career, lefties have hit .283 against him.
Bargain Bat
Now with the Reds, Gavin Lux ($3,600) has started his tenure well. He's hit .302, and even his .422 slugging percentage would be a personal best. I grant you that since he has made the move to the outfield, that kind of power doesn't play as well as it did at second base. However, over the last two seasons he's slugged .422 against righties. Spencer Schwellenbach is a promising young pitcher, but he's shown one weak point in MLB so far. Yes, it's his performance against lefties. They hit .253 against him in his rookie campaign, and this year that number is up to .272.
Stack to Consider
Phillies at Rays (Ryan Pepiot): Kyle Schwarber ($5,600), Bryce Harper ($5,500), Nick Castellanos ($4,400)
Seeing rain associated with a Rays home game was a real "Oh yeah, no more Tropicana Field" moment for me. Pepiot has a 5.14 FIP this year, and he's allowed 1.88 homers per nine innings. Given that he's allowed 1.39 home runs per nine in his career, that isn't too surprising. The Phillies have some sluggers, to be sure. This is the stack I landed on.
Schwarber really wants to get back to being a 40-homer player after managing a mere 38 last season. He's hit 12 home runs already, and thanks to his batting eye he also has a .410 OBP. Harper has a .368 OBP, and he's running more than the last couple years. In addition to his six homers and seven doubles, he has six stolen bases. Castellanos has hit .285 with four homers and 10 doubles. While Castellanos has traditionally hit better against lefties, this year Pepiot has allowed his fellow righties hit .321 against him.
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